(Yicai) June 17 -- Trade between China and the five Central Asian countries, namely Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, reached a new record in the five months ended May 31, reflecting deepening economic ties, according to the latest data.

From January to May, imports and exports between China and the Central Asian countries climbed 10.4 percent year on year to hit CNY286.4 billion (USD39.8 billion), the most ever for the period, according to data released by the General Administration of Customs of China on June 15.

And the upward trend has been gathering pace for some time. Trade between China and the Central Asian nations more than doubled last year from 2013 to CNY674.1 billion (USD93.8 billion). The average annual growth rate reached 7.3 percent, which is 2.3 percentage points higher than the average annual growth rate of China’s overall trade during the same period.

China mainly exports industrial and consumer goods such as machinery, electronics and vehicles to Central Asian countries. Imports from Central Asia are mostly natural resources and bulk commodities, including crude oil, natural gas, copper ore, refined copper and agricultural products. This complementary trade structure helps to strengthen economic ties on both sides.

China’s imports of agricultural products from these five Central Asian countries surged 27 percent in the first five months from a year earlier to CNY4.3 billion (USD598 million). Flaxseed imports from Kazakhstan tripled, raisin imports from Uzbekistan soared two-and-a-half-fold and honey imports from Kyrgyzstan surged 11 times.

Improved overland transport links are also making a big difference. Road transport now accounts for 51.8 percent of the trade between China and the Central Asian countries, up from 19.9 percent in 2020. In the first five months, road-based trade jumped 10.9 percent year on year to CNY143.6 billion (USD20 billion) and still accounts for more than half of total trade.

Editor: Kim Taylor